Independent 10,079 by Phi

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As always from Phi, a pleasant crossword whose secrets are quite obvious once they are revealed, but are less obvious to begin with. I’m lost on one of them, but will I trust be helped by someone; indeed I predict that within an hour someone will have put me right and all will be clear and I’ll wonder how I was ever so stupid.

Definitions in maroon, underlined. Anagram indicators in italics.

One tends to try not particularly hard to see a Phi Nina, since the tendency is to say ‘oh well, I’d never have seen that anyway’.  So of course I see nothing.

Across
1 DUMPSTER Perhaps skip politician being entertained by cleaner (8)
du(MP)ster — Collins tells us that a dumpster is a large metal container for using rubbish, but ‘in BRIT, usually use skip‘.
5 ABACUS Counter, basic stuff, American, that has engaged one (6)
(AB(a)C US) — the basic stuff is the ABC
9 CONTINUE “Money” (you texted) “invested in ice-cream? Keep at it” (8)
con(tin U)e — U is the text version of you and the ice-cream is a cone
10 STOOGE Last of jokes also recalled for one comedy partner (6)
{joke}s too (eg)rev.
12 MISCONSTRUE Wrongly interpret consumerist moves (11)
(consumerist)*
15 TORSO Body roughly attached to regiment, ultimately (5)
{regimen}t or so — the torso is the trunk of the human body, but close enough I suppose
17 RENASCENT Making a comeback near broken-down trail (9)
(near)* scent
18 OVERSLEEP Stay out having stayed out? (9)
CD — if you’ve stayed out late, you may have overslept
19 ARSON Fire requiring forensic study has a group of scientists working (5)
a RS on — RS = Royal Society
20 BANANA SPLIT Mad drunk swallowing soft dessert (6,5)
bananas (p) lit
24 AFRICA Caribbean country, discounting cost, securing fine mass of land (6)
{Cost}a (f)  Rica
25 LITERATI Writers etc left copy that’s not acceptable (8)
l iterati{on}
26 SUMMON Request appearance of everything before start of working week (6)
sum Mon.
27 PELL-MELL Impetuously supplying rhymes for 21? (4-4)
Since 21 is SPELL, we have two rhymes for this
Down
1 DECIMATION Significant destruction in December: excitement a November missed (10)
Dec. {a N}imation — N is the letter in the NATO phonetic alphabet
2 MINISERIES A few programmes, fashionable, probing wretched conditions (10)
m(in)iseries
3 SLIGO Government blocking paintings going up in Irish town (5)
(o(G)ils)rev.
4 EQUESTRIENNE Endless interest Queen developed as a horsewoman (12)
(interes{t} Queen)*
6 BATTERSEA Attack main area of London (9)
batter sea [= main]
7/8 CHOP SUEY U-turn after quantities of meat seen in Chinese dish (4,4)
chops uey — I took a while to establish that uey is correct: it’s Australian slang for U-turn
11 TRANSPONTINE No patterns in rocks across the river? (12)
(No patterns in)*
13 TESSELLATE Naughtily steal steel to make a patterned floor? (10)
*(steal steel)
14 STAND TRIAL Supporter of chambers heading off to appear in court case (5,5)
I’m quite lost here I’m afraid.  No doubt it’s perfectly straightforward — Phi’s answers usually are — but all I can surmise is that there is some word for a frame that holds a chamber pot, or something along those lines … [I think Gazzh@3 is correct: stand = supporter; atrial = ‘of chambers’, in connection with the heart; so it’s stand {a}trial]
16 OSSO BUCCO Caught copper and superior in middle of room, turning up for stew (4,5)
(o(c Cu boss)o)rev,, the oo being {r}oo{m}
21 SPELL English learners attending special period (5)
sp. E LL
22/23 BASS DRUM Idiot taking daughter into Birmingham to get instrument (4,4)
B(ass d.)rum

*anagram

8 comments on “Independent 10,079 by Phi”

  3. Re 14d – a stand is a supporter, ATRIAL refers to chambers of the heart I think, so without the heading (first letter A) we obtain TRIAL. Does that make sense?

  4. I really liked this a lot although I was completely flummoxed by the derivation of the last two letters of 8d.   Now that I’ve seen John’s explanation that has rather taken the gloss off my enjoyment.  I suppose I’ll have to start watching Neighbours to have any chance of solving clues like this.

  6. Enjoyable as ever from Phi but couldn’t  fully parse 14d so thanks to Gazzh et al for the explanation.   11d was new to me but easy enough to determine from the wordplay and checkers.

    Thanks to Phi and to John for the review.

  7. I enjoyed this and finished pretty quickly but couldn’t work out 8d. A taxi driver in Sydney once said to us “I’ll just do a quick uey” but I’ve never seen it written down before. I was pleased with myself for thinking of atrial. Thanks Phi and John.

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